NEWS & SUCCESS STORIES

NEWS // October 12, 2017

Daily Harvest Express Brings Healthy Food to You

Daily Harvest Express is a family-owned company with a mission to
increase local food consumption, save local farms and promote healthy
living. From delivering fruit to the office, to the mobile farm stand
and healthy cooking demos, Daily Harvest Express helps San Diego
County residents recognize the many benefits of and overcome obstacles
to eating locally grown fruits and veggies.

There are several reasons why eating locally-grown, healthy food has
become more difficult. Local family farms in San Diego are
disappearing. Last year there were more than 6,000 farms less than 10
acres; this year there are only 5,000. Small farms are shutting down
at an alarming rate due to requirements that are unsustainable for
most small farms. Small farms also don’t always have the capability to
grow a variety of produce or customize produce boxes for members’
preferences. All of this translates into a less healthy workforce, a
less vibrant agricultural sector and a huge economic drain on the
local economy.

Daily Harvest Express sought to solve some of these issues by first
contacting farms and building a base of suppliers. Their first farm
stand was an open-air stand at a local nursery with short hours and
customers had a tough time getting to it before it closed. Sales were
slow and too much food was wasted. The owners decided to change from
the farm stand to a delivery service with a big focus on wellness
coordinators and human resource managers at corporations throughout
San Diego County.

Through outreach efforts at health fairs and direct mail, companies
got more and more excited about offering Daily Harvest Express to
their employees. People enjoyed the experience of selecting their own
produce and talking with each other about healthier eating. After
several months, Daily Harvest Express expanded to other locations and
after a lot of research and creative planning, they became the first
mobile farm stand in San Diego County!

Daily Harvest Express provides a beneficial service to both farmers
and consumers. “We are able to receive a fair market price for our
produce, but with a more manageable volume and delivery system for
us,” says Maria Huang of Immanuel Farms.

“The convenience of having locally grown, organic produce at their
[employees] fingertips without running an ‘errand’ is worth its weight
in gold," said a client Senior Wellness Administrator.